The Virginia-class fast-attack submarine USS Minnesota arrives at Naval Base Guam on Nov. 26, 2024. (Justin Wolpert/U.S. Navy)
The USS Minnesota arrived Tuesday at Naval Base Guam, the first Virginia-class fast-attack submarine to be homeported in the strategically important U.S. territory.
“The security environment in the Indo-Pacific requires that the U.S. Navy station the most capable units forward,” the service said in a news release announcing the sub’s arrival that day.
“This posture allows flexibility for maritime and joint force operations, with forward-deployed units ready to rapidly respond to deter aggression and promote a peaceful and prosperous Indo-Pacific region.”
The Virginia-class subs will eventually replace the Navy’s aging fleet of Cold War-era Los Angeles-class vessels.
Guam homeports four Los Angeles-class subs: USS Annapolis, USS Jefferson City, USS Asheville and USS Springfield.
Virginia-class subs are designed for a greater range of missions, with an emphasis on littoral operations, according to a Navy fact sheet.
They support a host of missions, including anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface ship warfare, strike warfare, surveillance and reconnaissance.
The subs are designed so that their torpedo rooms can be reconfigured to hold a large number of special operations forces and their equipment during extended deployments.
The USS Minnesota was commissioned Sept. 7, 2013, in Norfolk, Va., becoming the 10th Virginia-class sub brought into service.
It was previously homeported at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, where it completed a two-year maintenance overhaul this summer.
The ship is manned by a crew of about 140 sailors, according to the Navy’s news release.
The crew members are “eager to get out into the local community and stand ready to contribute to our strategic objectives and maintain warfighting readiness in the Pacific,” Cmdr. Isaac Pelt, Minnesota’s skipper, said in the release.
Guam is of growing importance to the Pentagon’s Indo-Pacific strategy as China continues to expand its navy and its ambitions in the region.
The island is also home to Andersen Air Force Base and Camp Blaz, a massive Marine Corps base still under construction.
Guam would serve as a critical hub in the event of a conflict with Beijing because of its proximity to the South China Sea, a flashpoint in the region.
The USS Minnesota’s presence “will enhance our operational capabilities and further strengthen deterrence efforts throughout the Indo-Pacific,” Capt. Neil Steinhagen, commander of Submarine Squadron 15, said in the news release.
